


Fruits of Paradise

by afangirlsplaylist



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: Fluff, Kingdom Hearts AU, M/M, reinvented blood oath, rhink friendship, soul-mate bond
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-14
Updated: 2017-06-14
Packaged: 2018-11-14 04:33:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11200524
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afangirlsplaylist/pseuds/afangirlsplaylist
Summary: A Paopu Fruit (パオプの実 Paopu No Mi?) is a star-shaped fruit native to Destiny Islands. It resembles the star fruit. According to legend, “If two people share one, their destinies become intertwined. They’ll remain a part of each other’s lives no matter what” - Kingdom Hearts wiki.





	Fruits of Paradise

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lovelyrhink (crimsonwinter)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/crimsonwinter/gifts).



> This happened thanks to a conversation with/prompt from @lovelyrhink so this is entirely her fault and all blame goes to her. It’s a Kingdom Hearts AU but you don’t really need to know anything other than what the Paopu fruit is to understand it. It’s also a reinterpretation of the blood oath for Tropetastic #15. Link is 14 and Rhett is 15 in this.

There weren’t many things as beautiful as a Destiny Island sunset. It threw a rainbow of pastel pinks, yellows and golds over the sand and sky, making the water licking at the cliff side look like crystal. Everything from the blue of Link’s eyes to the blonde of Rhett’s hair looked radiant and extra bright in the light, yet to them, the view could’ve have felt more boring. As with most places, the excitement of the landscape lost its novelty when you’d lived there your whole life.

Rhett was sprawled out the ground with his eyes closed, while Link sat on a rock, lazily twirling a branch he’d found. He only looked up when he heard the rustle of Rhett getting up.

“You off home already?” Link called over his shoulder.

“Nope,” Rhett called back vaguely.

Without explanation, Rhett wandered over to a tree and fumbled around the leaves of it with his hands. He was tall enough to reach the hanging star-shaped fruit easily, pulling off the biggest and ripest piece he could see. Before Link could get a look at it, he hid it behind his back and strolled over to the rock.

“Were you serious about doing something awesome? about getting out of here?” Rhett asked, and Link was taken aback by how serious his tone was.

“Yes….” Link answered warily. “Why?”

In answer, Rhett held out his hand with the fruit in it. By the light of the sunset, it looked so invitingly succulent and plump that it got Link’s full attention, making him lick his lips subconsciously. “Paopu fruit?”

Rhett nodded, delicately placing one hand around a point of the star. “Cole says if you share these babies with someone you’re bonded forever. Nothing can break you up.”

“Cole also went fishing with his hands last week.” Link argued, already twirling his branch between his fingers again. 

Rhett feigned sadness for his lack of interest, even as the corners of his mouth threatened to give him away. “If you don’t want to try it I guess I can share it with someone else.” 

He made to leave and got a few meters away before Link stopped him, reluctantly dropping his branch and standing up. “Okay fine. Give me the fruit.”

Smirking victoriously, Rhett carefully split the soft fruit in half with his hands, watching the excess juice pour from it. Satisfied that the halves were even, he ignored Link’s outstretched hand and snatched the fruit back when the other boy reached for it.

“Wait, I gotta feed it to you.” Rhett ordered.

“You’re not serious.” Link complained, trying and failing to take his half again. 

“Completely serious. If we’re gunna do this we’re gunna do it right.” Rhett promised, his grin growing wider. “Just shut up and let me feed it to you.” 

Link sighed and opened his mouth, bringing his half of the fruit towards Rhett’s face as he did it. He tilted his head to receive his half when he smelt the pleasantly earthy scent of Rhett’s hand, biting into the fruit when it got close enough. It erupted in his mouth with a juicy, tangy flavour - and if he had to compare he’d say it tasted like a marriage of pineapple and mango. 

“Mmmm.” Rhett groaned, grabbing his half from Link’s hand for another bite. “Destiny is delicious.” 

Link clenched his eyes shut to desperately keep hold of the moment, but the spell was already broken. “You ruined it.” 

“What’d I ruin?” Rhett mumbled between bites.

“The moment,” Link said impatiently, taking a few more bites before wrapping the rest in a piece of large flax. “It was a moment and you ruined it.” 

Supremely unbothered, Rhett shoved his remaining pieces into his mouth while Link pocketed his. 

“I can think of something that’ll fix that.” Rhett offered, and out of curiosity Link’s eyes followed his hand as Rhett reached into his own pocket.

He pulled out a large charm that looked just like a Paopu fruit except it was pink at the edges and made of hard plastic. It looked like it might have been a keychain once, but on an island with so few cars Rhett had fashioned it into something more like an ornament. 

“What is it?” Link asked.

“I thought a charm would seal this better than just a digested fruit,” Rhett explained, watching Link examine the charm as he spoke. “I keep it for luck, thought I’d give it to you.”

Link’s mouth opened a little in surprise as he turned the charm around in his palm. Rhett wasn’t one to share. They’d known each other almost as long as they could remember but the most Link could ever get him to share was some coconut water on a hot day.

“You want me to have this?”

Rhett shrugged. “If the fruit works you’ll be around to give it back to me. If it doesn’t…. I’ll need another charm.”

Link jumped a little when Rhett suddenly reached for a chain hanging from Link’s capri cargo pants, threading the clasp of the chain through a hole on the tip of the charm. Link couldn’t help feeling moved by the gesture, but he still felt a twinge of childish concern overshadowing it. 

“What’ll you do for luck in the meantime?” Link asked, wiggling his hips a little to admire the effect of the charm. 

“You’re the charm now brother,” Rhett said playfully, nudging him with his shoulder.

Link smiled in amusement, deciding to play along. “So when will you be wanting this back?” 

“Let’s say…. twenty years,” Rhett suggested. “You can give it to me then.”

As if to make the motion official, Rhett stretched out a long hand for Link to shake on it. Their hands were still slick with the juice of the fruit that bonded them as they shook, clasping them together longer than usual. 

“Forever?” Rhett asked

Without the usual weirdness and hesitation about touching, Link kept his fingers linked with Rhett’s, resting his head on his shoulder and looking out at the ocean with him. 

“Forever.” He agreed.

It was a while before Rhett had the heart to ease Link’s head off his shoulder, alarmed by how quickly the light was fading.

“Still wanna check out that cave before it’s too dark?” He asked.

Link nodded but grew suspicious at the sudden look of delight on his friend’s face.

“Race you there!” Rhett burst out suddenly, laughing as he immediately sprinted away.

“Your legs are longer, you jerk!” Link called after him, dashing to keep up as he followed Rhett across their wooden bridge and down a path. They didn’t stop until they’d ran past the beach front and towards a cave, hidden away and almost unnoticeable if you aren’t looking for it. The race was forgotten in anticipation of the space they had to explore, which was practically humming with intrigue.

“It’s dark as heck, dude.” Link observed, biting his lip as he peered inside.

“It’s fine,” Rhett assured him. “We ain’t the first ones in here.”

Link seemed to agree because he led the way inside, ducking his head a little at the entrance. Incredibly tall for his age, Rhett had to resort to crouching as he followed, moving slowly down the passageway until it opened up into a larger chamber. 

The chamber was practically a room - with a high ceiling and a round, circular shape to it. They were also now sure that they weren’t the first ones to find it because it was covered in drawings on the cave walls- some silly, some skillful and some strange. None of it was of much interest to them until an etch near the bottom of one of the walls caught Link’s attention. 

“Rhett, take a look at this.”

Rhett turned away from another drawing at his words and was surprised to find Link sitting on the cave floor, looking closely at something.

It was a crudely drawn picture of two people sharing a Paopu fruit, hacked into the wall with a rock, One was a smiling young girl and the other was a big-haired young boy, Feeling fascinated, Link traced the carving with his finger. 

“I wonder how many people have shared one of these.” Link wondered aloud, pulling his bit of fruit from its flax and holding it in one hand again. 

“I wonder how many worked,” Rhett added, but he admired the drawing just the same.

Link’s finger now ran over the locks on the boy’s hair and then over the star, coming to a halt when he was hit with an idea. 

“Give me your hand.” Link told him.

Ignoring Rhett’s grimace at the slimy feeling of the fruit on his fingers again, Link squeezed the flesh of his remaining fruit until Rhett’s hand was wet enough. When he was done he did the same to his own, before taking Rhett’s hand and pressing it into the wall just below the other drawing.

He held Rhett’s hand there to let it soak deep into the wall - before, like an artist grabbing a pencil from behind their ear, Link felt around the ground for a rock. He started carving around Rhett’s palm, working it in until there was a white outline of his hand on the rock. He then traced his own so it looked like both of their hands were reaching for the fruit too. Still not done, he carved out seven letters below it and sat back.

His eyes roamed over his handiwork briefly before he looked to Rhett for approval. But it was only a second before he realized he didn’t need to ask - because Rhett’s eyes told him it was just right.

“What about theirs?” Rhett asked, nodding towards the pair in the drawing. “Reckon it worked for them?”

“I don’t know.” Link said honestly, now running the remaining juice over the stars with his thumb. “But ours will.” 

They stayed only a little longer, taking the moment to admire their work and offer a silent wish of good luck to whoever the others were. 

The letters carved below the two pieces of art shined for a while after they left before it was lost to the darkness of night - spelling out a single word,

_Forever._

**Author's Note:**

> This is officially the weirdest AU I've ever done. As always comments are life so please drop a comment if you enjoyed it. Cheers :)


End file.
